Conventional hummingbird feeders provide sugared water to hummingbirds and other nectarvors, thereby attracting these birds to the neighboring areas for feeding. The feeders basically comprise a reservoir which contains a sugar water solution. The birds access the liquid by means of orifices provided near the base of the reservoir and attached to tubes running in a downward direction which are open at the lower end. Typically, the surface tension of the liquid keeps the sugar water solution from flowing freely.
Since bees can also easily access these feeders, the bees tend to gather around the feeders in large numbers. As a result, the birds are denied access to the feeders since they are afraid of bees. Furthermore, the bees endanger those persons who must fill or otherwise maintain the feeder. This risk is obviously increased if the bees in question are of the African or African-mixed varieties as their sting is more ferocious.
Another problem involves the leakage of the sugar water solution from the reservoir. This leakage occurs in feeders under various circumstances: when the feeder is handled, re-filled for use, rocked by the wind, being used by the bird since the animal's beak will break through the membrane formed by superficial surface tension of the solution, and especially by the warming of the volume of air present within the reservoir, causing the air to expand and expel the solution from the reservoir. This last effect is exacerbated if the feeder is placed in direct sunlight. The sugar water solution which is expelled will soil the floor or ground area on which it falls and draw ants. Eventually, the ants will locate the source of the sugar water solution and be drawn directly to the feeder, again deterring the birds.
The problems described often render the feeder impractical, causing many owners to stop using them. The hummingbird feeders currently available provide no solution to the cited problems, although some attempts to improve them have been made. For example, one such feeder provides access to the sugar water solution by means of a tube placed in a downward direction, the end of which is covered by a screen. The purpose of the screen is to deter bees from gaining access, while at the same time allowing access to the beaks of the hummingbirds. However, this system does not keep the solution from leaking. Moreover, when the sugar water leaks, the screen becomes wet from the sugar water solution, thus allowing the bees to have continuous access to the solution.
Another type of feeder has orifices near the base, over which a plate-shaped collector is seated to collect the water which overflows or is expelled. However, this system also fails to prevent bees from feeding on the sugar water solution and actually provides easier access than the prior example. Moreover, since the volume of the collector is much smaller than that of the feeder, the collector cannot hold all of the sugar water overflow. In the case of a large leakage, which often occurs when the air within the feeder expands due to warming, the ground or floor area is soiled.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide a hummingbird feeder which overcomes the above mentioned drawbacks by providing a feeder which prevents bees from feeding and also eliminates leakage of the sugar water solution stored within the reservoir.